An off-duty police officer has been praised for stopping a man who appeared to be stealing a mountain bike in Stafford.

His quick thinking led to an arrest.

Last Tuesday (30 June), the officer was in the South Walls area at around 9:20am when he saw a man attempting to break the lock from a bike which had been chained to a tree.

He was assaulted by the suspect but was not deterred and managed to alert his colleagues in the local policing team (LPT) to what was happening.

Following the incident, the officer received treatment in hospital for tendon damage to his hands.

A man from Rugeley, aged 38, was arrested a short time later on suspicion of attempted theft of a pedal cycle, assault with intent to resist arrest and assault by beating.

He has since been placed on bail.

Sergeant Dan Haughton, of Stafford Borough LPT, said of the officer's heroic actions: "The off-duty PC took immediate action when he saw a crime in progress and despite not having any equipment, was able to successfully detain the suspect and alert his colleagues to what had happened.

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"He sustained a significant injury to his hands in the incident and is undergoing medical treatment.

"We have since recovered the bike and would encourage the owner to come forward."

Anyone who knows the owner of the Viking mountain bike which was chained to a tree close to Costa should call 101 or use Live Chat on the Staffordshire Police website quoting incident number 230 of 30 June.